troy fairweather
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i have about 15 of them thinking o trying them. i user the 140 in my 7x57120 Sierra Pro Hunters are devastating on whitetails from a 7mm-08. Ask me how I know.
25-06, 7mm08, or 270?
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Llama Bob
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This strikes me as yet another case of shooting small animals with high power rifles at short range. It really doesn't matter what you use - they're all equal. I'd probably go with 100gr in the .25-06 just for reduced recoil of the options listed. But it won't be much different than a .243.
Llama Bob
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The reality is that most shooters are affected negatively by the recoil of the .308 and .270 class and up cartridges. As you move down through the 6.5mms and 6mms it gets quite a bit better. It's easy to get all manly about it and give other shooters a hard time, but at the end of the day most shooters shoot smaller guns more confidently and accurately.
MachIVshooter
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There's a lot of truth here.
I'm a very seasoned shooter of sporting weight rifles, have some pretty big boomers. But one of the reasons I so love my .25-06 is that I can really settle down behind it and make excellent shots. I don't find my 8mm Rem Mag intolerable, but with about triple the recoil of the .25-06, I'm definitely more tense behind it, and it shows in my groups. My .375 RUM? Even moreso, and while I don't doubt that the rifle is mechanically capable of sub-MOA, I certainly don't shoot it that well off hand or off a rest or bipod. And with a calculated 82 ft. lbs. FRE @ 26 MPH, I don't shoot that clavicle breaking mini-cannon prone at all.
In my mid 30s with a solid, fit build and a pretty high pain threshold, I probably tolerate sporting weight rifle .30-06 or 7mm RM class recoil better than most, but it's about as much as I want to deal with for any duration. I remember some time ago putting a couple hundred rounds of heavy .45-70 (405 gr. @ 2,020 FPS) through my Marlin 1895 in a day, and I paid for it.
Llama Bob
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Yeah, I've got my fair share of guns in the safari rifle recoil class. But really it's just more pleasant to shoot the small stuff.
Even thought I don't own one, I feel like the .25-06 and .257 Roberts are actually really good fits to "typical" usage - not too far, not too big a game, no reason to get beat to death. Who cares about the bullet selection when deer and pigs are the biggest thing on the menu? You don't need a weldcore for bambi. And you don't need a VLD secant ogive plastic tipped vunderbullet to shoot 100y.
I just happen to live in a state where it's easier to get a worthwhile elk tag than a deer tag, and the best rifle season is held above treeline. So I've got magnums that would be unnecessary most places. But even then I stop at .264 and 7mm mag. No need for more.
Even thought I don't own one, I feel like the .25-06 and .257 Roberts are actually really good fits to "typical" usage - not too far, not too big a game, no reason to get beat to death. Who cares about the bullet selection when deer and pigs are the biggest thing on the menu? You don't need a weldcore for bambi. And you don't need a VLD secant ogive plastic tipped vunderbullet to shoot 100y.
I just happen to live in a state where it's easier to get a worthwhile elk tag than a deer tag, and the best rifle season is held above treeline. So I've got magnums that would be unnecessary most places. But even then I stop at .264 and 7mm mag. No need for more.
someguy2800
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You can shoot a 7 lb 25-06 with 90 grain varmint bullets all day. It is a fantastic one rifle does all caliber. Think of it as a 243 scaled up 20%.
someguy2800
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I don't really care all that much about the ballistic coefficients of hunting bullets because the really high BC bullets are not the ones I'm going to pick to go hunting anyway. After trying lots of different kinds of bullets on game the most effective ones have always been soft points, preferably bonded. So yes you can get better ELD bullets in 7mm than 257 but I don't really care. My far and away most effective bullet I have used in 25-06 is 120 gr federal fusions. I shot alot of deer with them as factory loads and later bought 1000 of them as pulled bullets. The BC I think is .485 which ain't exactly blunt. I get so little wind drift at 300 yards its hard to see what I'm missing. My 6.5x284 isn't that much better.
MachIVshooter
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Most of the 115,117, 120 gr. boat tails really don't have bad B.C.s comparatively. I use Sierra 117 Gamekings for the most part, which sport a .410 G1 B.C. The Berger 115 is .483. You have to step into the heaviest bullets for caliber to exceed that with hunting bullets in .244, .264, .284. Even in .308", you really won't see over .500 until you go 180 gr. & heavier. Yeah, one can get .284" bullets that have a .750 B.C., but will your average hunting rifle even stabilize those long 195 gr pills?
Garandimal
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Funny, since my 162 ELD-X's are my go-to bullet for my 7mm-08. My 168 Barnes are even "pokier"
Other than that, I agree with your summary.
Noticed that.
Am interested to know what the Bbl length/muzzle velocity is.
The .284/160 gr. bullets are very attractive. Even a little more so than the .277/150's. But you can't really push'em like the .270 WIN unless you hand load, and even then the .280 AI is the cartridge that will move them with the same efficiency. Not much factory support for 7mm-08 in > 140 gr. either.
A .270 WIN round that I really like for the woods, besides the Federal 150 gr. Partitions, is the 140 gr. Barnes TSX - and no one loads it anymore. Luckily I got a metric crap-load of it when Pierce Performance (Ted Nugent) was on clearance a while back at ~ $0.75/pop.
GR
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I shoot those at 3100 from my .250AI and they are fantastic on 70-80lb sheep. I hope to see how they do on larger axis deer in the next few months.
Down side is Berger says they are not fully stable in a 1-10 and end up with a bc in the .46s....No idea if thats really true, its not one of the guns ive had a chance to do enough testing to decide if the bc is off or not.
Hornadys 110 ELDX lists a bc around .46 and its cheaper than the Bergers, gonna try some.
In fact midsouthshootersupply has them (i think) as blems right now...gonna try some if shipping isnt a killer.....never mind its brutal.
I didn’t call anyone names. But apparently it’s just as easy to give those of us who are “manly” and can take it, a hard time.
I shot a 300WM with 220’s over 80 or 81gr of Retumbo once. Rifle weighed just over 7lbs. Now THAT’s negatively affecting recoil. And I have no desire to do that again. Yet there very well could be someone on this forum that does it everyday with zero effect. They’re like “ultra manly”.
Garandimal
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Moved down from the .30-06 to the .270 WIN decades ago because of recoil in a sporter rifle (M1 Garand is no problem).
...then I cut an inch off the butt and added a Pachmayr recoil pad. 150 gr. All-day pussycat.
Buddy of mine doesn't shoot real well with 150+ bullets from his .270, he shoots 90s mostly.
Personally i have little issue with a mid weight .270 or .30-06, but get them down around 7lbs otd, and they start to sting pretty good. Fitment and squishy pads do make a huge difference
Id much rather shoot my properly fitted and kickeezed, 8 1/4lb, .375 Ruger firings 270s at 2800, than a poorly fitted 7.5lb .270, with a hard plate or pad, firing 150s at 2900.
the .270s my buddies gun, hes almost 8" shorter than me and his guns fitted to him.
Personally i have little issue with a mid weight .270 or .30-06, but get them down around 7lbs otd, and they start to sting pretty good. Fitment and squishy pads do make a huge difference
Id much rather shoot my properly fitted and kickeezed, 8 1/4lb, .375 Ruger firings 270s at 2800, than a poorly fitted 7.5lb .270, with a hard plate or pad, firing 150s at 2900.
the .270s my buddies gun, hes almost 8" shorter than me and his guns fitted to him.
I like all the cartridges that you mentioned. If you already had a 270 though and didn't like the recoil then I don't really understand why are you considering another one? If it's just because you have the dies I would suggest that you not let that figure too much into the decision. Sounds to me like you already have a very good light recoiling deer rifle in the 243... If you just have an urge to buy a new rifle all the cartridges that you mentioned are good along with the 257, 6.5 Swede or CM.
If you like the 25-06 then just go for it. I think the 270 or 7mm08 would be a little more versatile and one of those is probably what I would choose (since you already have a 243) but I don't find the recoil with those to be as much of an issue...
Cowhide Cliff
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Of those the 7-08. I've become a fan of the short action.
OP
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Olympus
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A couple things I don’t understand....
1. If the OP states his 243 is devastating on deer, why change? Dead is dead. If he just wants something new to play with, then I can’t fault him for that. Having something new is part of it. And if I’m getting something new, why not in a caliber I don’t already have?
2. When did the 270 become so harsh on the shoulder? I must have skipped recoil school that day. Recoil is a subjective thing. Big muscled up or “plump” builds can handle recoil a bit better than thin, bony builds. You might have been out sick on the day they covered that in class.
3. How many times have any of us shot at an animal and the first thing we thought after we pulled the trigger was “Dang my shoulder hurts”? I’ve NEVER thought that. Not one time. Get a good recoil pad if it’s that big of a concern. Never, but how easy is it for the brain to remember the beating it took shooting that gun from the bench? The brain can do a lot of things without you realizing, like developing a flinch.
4. What is the ratio for one shot kills to follow up shots? Long vs Short action today is pretty much null. Make your first shot count and it doesn’t matter. Screw up your first shot, you’re likely to screw up the hurried second one. Short vs long action to me is more of a factor about overall length of the gun. As a woods hunter in a tree stand, a shorter overall length gun is always going to be a plus for me.
5. Isn’t proper bulletin selection more important than cartridge when we compare these rounds? Use a well constructed bullet and a round that’s good at 400 yards is going to be good at 100. Sure. I try to use good bullets at all times.
6. Aren’t we talking about killing deer? Like thin skinned Bambi that needs about 8” of penetration to obliterate the heart and exit the other side? Yes, for the most part. There’s also the possibility for future hog hunting.
OP, go shoot the 7-08 and 25-06 and just choose. You won’t go wrong.
My nod goes to the 25-06 only to double as a truck gun when out looking for yotes.
I totally agree with you, there are decent bullets for the .25-06 out there if you look. Granted, if you're looking for match bullets there isn't much but there are lots of great hunting bullets for the .257.
What sold me on the .25-06 was the versatility. I shoot a lot of bullets in the 85 gr to 90 gr range as I use mine for hunting groundhogs and coyote now. The heavier stuff works great on deer or bigger but I no longer do that type of hunting.
After shooting a .25-06 for 40 years I've never had a sore shoulder from it, the cartridge worked well for everything I ever asked it to do. I used it for groundhogs in the summer and hunted deer and bear with it. Had the chance to hunt Elk ever come up I'm sure the .25-06 would have done that too.
There wasn't one time I regretted owning a rifle in this cartridge. I still remember having a smith put a new barrel on it about 6 years ago. He asked what cartridge I wanted it chambered in, the choice was very easy.
Captcurt
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I wouldn't worry about the BC of any of these calibers unless you are planning on some long range target shooting. Billions of deer have fallen to a standard, run-of-the-mill, factory bullet and will work when used under 400 or 500 yards. Personally I have taken the majority of my game with Speer HotCor or Nosler Accubonds in an assortment of calibers. They all work well out to 400+ yards.
As for caliber selection, flip a coin. If I was recoil shy I would go with the 7mm-08 and this is a guy that shot a 270 for over 20 years.
As for caliber selection, flip a coin. If I was recoil shy I would go with the 7mm-08 and this is a guy that shot a 270 for over 20 years.
morcey2
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I'm a huge fan of 7x57 and 7mm-08 is its ballistic twin, so that's what I'd do. That's just me. Any of the three would work just fine though. Maybe one of each?
Matt
Matt
armedwalleye
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I'm a huge fan of the 7-08, but if the rifle of choice isn't offered as a short action, there's not much of an advantage....unless you rethink the rifle choice. If you do, I really like my Browning micro....
MachIVshooter
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7x57 just has a cool factor, though-especially if it's in a nicely done sporterized Mauser or especially in a rolling block. 7mm-08 is kinda vanilla.
Maybe one of each?
Maybe the best answer!
Bolt action .25-06
Pump or semi-auto .270
Nice single shot in 7x57
TN Outlaw
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Not very much difference in the ones you mentioned as far as a whitetail deer are
concerned. Especially between the 7mm-08 and the 270win. Those 2 are practically identical.
I know alot of people make a big deal out of being able to get lots of high BC 7mm bullets but not for the .277. I personally don't see why you would really want any if your buying this as a hunting rifle? On top of that, I have no problem finding heavier higher BC bullets in .277. Nosler, Berger, and all the usual suspects make them. 150gr Nosler Accubond is a good one. I'm using 160gr Nosler Partition so there are heavy bullets with good BC's available. You can load ammo to suit your wants and needs.
For your purpose, you just need hunting bullets and both have plenty of them to choose from, bullet wts will be close, recoil will be close, results will be identical. The only thing that really separates them in my opinion is if for some reason you are forced to buy ammo off of the shelf for every box of 7mm-08, 25-06, 257Bob, 280rem, there will be 5 boxes of 270Win. Way more flavors to choose from in 270win.
Ultimately it's whichever you decide to take a liken too. Id look at the 6.5CM or 270Win personally.
concerned. Especially between the 7mm-08 and the 270win. Those 2 are practically identical.
I know alot of people make a big deal out of being able to get lots of high BC 7mm bullets but not for the .277. I personally don't see why you would really want any if your buying this as a hunting rifle? On top of that, I have no problem finding heavier higher BC bullets in .277. Nosler, Berger, and all the usual suspects make them. 150gr Nosler Accubond is a good one. I'm using 160gr Nosler Partition so there are heavy bullets with good BC's available. You can load ammo to suit your wants and needs.
For your purpose, you just need hunting bullets and both have plenty of them to choose from, bullet wts will be close, recoil will be close, results will be identical. The only thing that really separates them in my opinion is if for some reason you are forced to buy ammo off of the shelf for every box of 7mm-08, 25-06, 257Bob, 280rem, there will be 5 boxes of 270Win. Way more flavors to choose from in 270win.
Ultimately it's whichever you decide to take a liken too. Id look at the 6.5CM or 270Win personally.
As a note, much like the .257s, the highest BC .277s haven't duplicated the advertised BC under testing in the 1-10s that are standard. Most still shoot pretty well but lose a fair percentage of their advertised bc, making more regular offers very close, or just as good.
I also agree, as a hunting gun especially at shorter ranges, rarely would bc be a real issue.
I've always felt that the issues with twist and BC really bothered me, but I shoot a .25 running Berger's in a 1-10 (which probably doesn't get the advertised bc)......and ya know....I kinda don't care.
I've always disliked the .27s, and the bc/twist issue was always one of the reasons I've used to justify the dislike....perhaps I need to build one and see how I actually like one set up for me
Newtosavage
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As was said above...
There are some real advantages to long action 7mm-08's if you plan to shoot high BC, heavy bullets. The Tikka offers the best of both worlds in that you can run a 7mm-08 at an "intermediate length" like I have, seat long 162 and 168's out near the lands, AND have a rifle that weighs just 6.25 lbs.
OP
OP
Olympus
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I've been hunting for more than 25 years and I've never given BC or SD a single thought. I'm pretty sure none of the deer and hogs I've killed could tell the difference either. A hunting bullet is a hunting bullet to me. Bullet weight, composition/build type, and speed are the only factors I look at when choosing a hunting bullet. I've yet to have a shot longer than 150 yards, so BC means little to nothing to me.
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